Apple Of My Eye
by A-Star-Trekked-Sherlockian
Summary: Looking after kids was the last thing that the Avengers had expected to have to do. However, when Thor finds two young children hiding behind a dumpster in an alleyway he brings them back to the Stark Tower. Will the rest of the Avengers allow them to stay, and if they do, can they keep them out of danger?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I've been sitting on this idea for a little while now. I hope you enjoy it and leave plenty of reviews and things because they make me happy.**

**Apple Of My Eye**

Stark Tower was busy, noisy and full. Luckily that was just how Thor liked it. Having all the people that he could constantly joke and laugh with made him feel at home. Every day at the Stark Tower was like a night of feasting in Asgard. He found this to be particularly enjoyable. Of course he would, it was food. Thor thought about Midgard food all the time while he was in Asgard. His home food was more elaborate than the stuff he enjoyed back at the tower but there was something about the simple tastiness that Thor enjoyed. Maybe it was because it barely took any preparation (not that he was the one preparing it in Asgard at all. One of the perks of being royal). Maybe it was because it was new and a novelty thing for Thor at this time. Whatever it was there was something that made Midgard nutrients more desirable than those he received in Asgard.

That wasn't to say that food was his one and only reason for staying at Stark Tower. He had already mentioned the people. It was just that the food was definitely a large factor in the matter. He thought about this as he took the Rainbow bridge back to Midgard.

With a loud clap of thunder he landed on the pavement outside the tower. He frowned, looking up at the Earth's sky that was cloudy and dull. At that moment the heavens opened, pouring buckets of water across Thor's unsuspecting face. Well, he definitely didn't come back to Midgard for the weather. He crinkled his features against the impact of the many raindrops and turned to head inside quickly. However he stopped.

His ears strained quickly as he swore he heard a sound. It was a squeal of sorts; high-pitched and scared. Thor looked around the area, seeing if he could source the noise but nothing stood out from the city's wall of sound as wrong or different. He went to turn back towards the complex when he heard it again. This time it was accompanied by a hush from something else.

"Is somebody there?" Thor called out, his voice booming across the street. A small gasp was heard and that settled any doubt in Thor's mind that somebody definitely was there. "I'm not going to hurt you." He said in the most reassuring voice he could muster. The disembodied sound had turned into repetitive sniffles with a few occasional shrieks added in for good measure. It was not hard to follow the noise but the place where it appeared to be coming from was strange.

Thor was now heading down a dark alleyway, the rain was still coming down in torrents and he was now soaked to the bone. Mjolnir was threatening to slip from his hands as water collected underneath his grasp. He held it tighter and continued all the way down to the end of the strange lane. The sniffs had stopped but the shrieks hadn't. They kept coming just as loud and getting quicker by the second. Eventually it turned into a long, never-ending wail.

"Who's making that noise?" Thor asked to the darkness. He didn't expect a reply. In fact he had only expected the noise to vanish altogether now that he was this close. Instead he heard a whisper.

"Ollie.. Shush. Please!" He heard. The voice was little, tiny in fact and it sounded fragile. It was the voice of a girl he was sure. She sounded to be pleading with somebody and was in obvious distress. The wails were still coming but Thor didn't think they were coming from her. Somebody else must have been there.

"No!" Came a moody voice in between his crying This voice, Thor decided, was a young male. Very young in fact if the lack of sentence structure was going to go by. The boy was louder though and apparently had no knowledge that they were supposed to be hiding. Thor traced it quickly. The noises came from behind a large dumpster. Thor pushed it aside with ease. What he found was a little surprising.

A young girl with long brown hair that looked tangled and knotty was crouched, clutching hold of a toddler boy around his waist. Thor's eyes widened as he took in the little boy and short, dirty blonde hair and the streaks of dirt across his cheeks. The girl was also dirty but it covered her arms as well as he face. They appeared to be dry; the bin obviously acting as a shelter for them. The boy's eyes were red as if he was crying. It was then that Thor realised that his clap of thunder must have frightened the poor boy. He immediately felt terrible.

"I am sorry! I did not mean to frighten you both!" He cried out, kneeling in front of the two children quickly. The young girl stared up at him silently but the boy giggled and made grabby hands towards Mjölnir. He must have thought it was a toy. Thor looked down at the now giggling boy. His sobs had stopped suddenly and he seemed infinitely happier.

Thor couldn't work out how old the young girl was but he guessed that she was somewhere between 5 and 8. She held the boy tightly as she peered up at the large bulk of a man in front of her. Thor had to have been bigger than any average person she'd ever seen in her life because Thor was exactly that, bigger than an average person.

"My name is Thor, young Midgardian. What is yours?" Thor said, ignoring the fact that the girl didn't actually know what a Midgardian was, let alone the fact she was one herself. The girl bit her lip before answering.

"Mummy told me never to talk to strangers." She answered like a parrot and Thor smiled.

"What about strangers that are trying to help?" He asked.

"Well..." She lengthened her word more than it should have been as she thought. "I suppose that's okay." She nodded.

"So, what is your name?" Thor asked again.

"My name is Ella. And this is Ollie." She said, referring to the young boy in her grasp. Holding onto him was all she could do to stop the boy running towards Thor and his hammer to play. Thor nodded. The rain had cleared up while they had been talking but once again the clouds let down its rain, now drenching the three of them. Without the dumpster bin to shelter them the children were getting cold and wet.

Ollie's nose crinkled up and he let out a few struggled breaths as though about to cry. It was then that he wailed at the top is the lungs. The little girl cringed at the noise and started up her act of trying to calm him again. It was clear that the boy wasn't happy in the rain. He could only have been 2 years old at a push. The two children didn't have coats on them. This was strange, it was the middle of November. The weather had got progressively colder for a few weeks now.

"Come with me. I will get you to some place dry." Thor spoke loudly again. His voice carrying back down the alleyway and reaching people who were walking past the entrance. They turned to stare at the man dressed in odd clothes. He lifted the crying boy into one arm and held out his free hand to take Ella's. However the girl simply stayed crouch.

"I'm not supposed to go with strangers. Mummy said not to." She said, once again sounding like a parrot repeating a phrase it had heard too many times. Thor began to wonder exactly where this "Mummy" was. There had been no sign of a woman looking for her children and she let them outside without a coat at this time of year. Compared to the mothers in Asgard the ones are Earth appeared to be very careless. To an Asgardian mother, her children were her pride and joy. There was nothing that she would love more. This had been evident throughout the whole of Thor's childhood. Even whether a child had not been theirs they would swear to take good care of it. His own mother had taken Loki under her wing had she not?

"Where is your mother, Ella?" Thor asked slowly.

"I..." She frowned for a moment. "I don't know."

"Then come with me. I can find you food. Do you like poptarts? I didn't know what they were until recently and now they're my favourite food. And you will be warm."

Ella appeared to be a very trusting girl as she thought over the offer for a moment before agreeing happily. Thor couldn't quite decide if that was a good thing or not. It was good in the sense that it allowed him to take her somewhere safe but on the other hand if another person with not so valiant intentions had won her trust, what could have happened?

He took her hand and led her out of the alleyway. In one arm he carried Ollie and held Mjölnir in a precarious position at his fingertips. His other hand was keeping Ella close by him; his giant palms swallowing up her whole fist.

"Where are we going?" She asked quietly as they reached the end of the alley and Thor looked to cross the road. The little boy was silent in Thor's arms, in fact Thor thought he may have fallen asleep.

_That was surprisingly easy._

"Do you know of Stark Tower?"

"Yes! I walk past it to get to school. It's very big" Remarked the girl, her eyes lighting up.

"That's where we're going."

"Really?"

"Yes." Thor said in a confused tone. Didn't the girl believe him at first? He didn't quite understand the child's mind. He finally deemed it safe to cross the road (he was being extra careful now that he was responsible for two other lives) and entered the pass code on the gate. They opened automatically, granting the trio entrance to the building in a rather grand fashion. Ella let out a small gasp as she looked up at the towering complex, her mouth dropping open into a perfect 'O' shape.

They walked up to the front doors in silence. Ella still taking in everything and Ollie, who Thor had definitely decided was asleep, began to drool across Thor's armour. He let go of Ella's hand for just a moment to push the door open before taking a firm grip of her fragile limb once more and entering.

"I have arrived!" He called out down the hallway, "And I have visitors!"

* * *

**Alright then, so that was the first chapter of hopefully many if you enjoyed it. Do favourite it and leave reviews so I know if people want me to continue with this. I enjoyed writing it so that has to be a good sign, right?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I know this chapter has been a long time coming. Sorry about that. A-Levels and coursework and stuff make it hard to update. Thanks for reviews though, they're much appreciated!**

**Apple of My Eye: Chapter 2**

"So, they were just sat there? Behind the bins? In the rain?" Queried Steve. He was leaning forward on the edge of the sofa, his hands interlocked with each other between his legs as he looked at Thor.

"Yes," Thor nodded, "Why? Do you not believe me?" Steve shook his head quickly.

"No, no. I was just checking I had all the facts right." He sighed gently, his gaze dropping to the ground as he shook his head.

The children in question were sleeping on Bruce's bed at the moment. He had been kind enough to give it up for the two of them without any hassle. Ollie had only woken once on the way up there when he had been transferred from Thor's arms to Pepper's. He'd let out a small wail until Pepper held him close to her at which point the young boy had settled down and fallen asleep again. Ella had gone to sleep rather quickly herself. Thor had deduced that she probably hadn't slept probably since she'd been out on the streets, what with a 2 year old to look after.

The only people that had seen the little ones so far were Thor and Pepper. Miss Potts had insisted that two got well rested before they met the others. They weren't exactly calming people and she was sure they would only get them riled up and excited.

"Where are their parents?" Asked Natasha.

Thor simply shrugged unknowingly as he reached for the box of opened pop tarts that was laid on the coffee table. He looked around the living room and smiled broadly at his friends only to realise that no one was actually looking at him. Most of their gazes were averted to the ground and their mouths were all contorted into frowns. Thor frowned himself and released a sigh, shoving a pop tart into his mouth hungrily.

After a moment of silent the sound of little feet approached the door.

"Sir, there's someone outside the room." Reported JARVIS as the door was pushed slightly. A small hand appeared.

"Thor..?" Came a voice.

"In here." Replied Thor softly as turned to face the entrance. Ella peeked her head through quickly, her brown hair falling across her dirty features. She blinked as she caught sight of the vast amount of people in the room and let out a surprised "ooh".

Ella raised her small hand in greeting before walking over to Tony. She stopped directly in front of him and smiled widely with the muck still smeared across her cheeks.

"Your house is very nice." She said.

"And you're a very polite girl." Replied Tony with a smile, "But how do you know this is my house?" He asked. He was no stranger to people knowing he was but these people were usually adults. Small children usually only recognised him as "Iron Man".

"Because you're Tony Stark. Mummy walked us past here every day to get to school and every time we went she would say 'This is Iron Man's house and one day he, and the rest of the Avengers, might just save your life. Always remember that.' and so I did." She answered, quoting her Mother with a small finger waggle. Tony's eyes widened slightly and turned to look at the rest of the group. They look just as shocked as he did. Of course they weren't exactly strangers to people telling their children that they were going to look out for them if they ever got in trouble. However coming from this child it sounded sincere and the fact that she had been told every day was heart warming.

Ella giggled and ran back over to Thor. She tried to climb onto his lap and once he noticed she was struggling he gently picked up and placed her upon his knee.

"So what's your name?" Asked Bruce who was sat on the sofa next to Tony.

"My name is Ella." She smiled, leaning back into Thor.

"That's a pretty name, Ella. My name is Bruce."

"I know who you are! You're the Hulk! You smash things. I like that. You go RAAARGGGGH!"

The whole group laughed and Bruce managed a chuckle to as Tony nudged him in the side with a reassuring smile.

"I know who all of you are." She jumped down from Thor's lap and walked into the middle of room. "Iron Man! You fly and your suit is really cool. The Hulk! you get all green. Hawkeye! You shoot arrows. Mummy was going to let me take classes because I want to be as good as you. Black Widow! You are super cool! I was going to learn martial arts too. Captain America! You were frozen and you have a strong shield. And Thor! You're not from around here, but you have a really strong hammer."

"Who taught you all of that, Ella?" Asked Clint, a little dumbfounded.

"Mummy did. She told me it was important to know." She answered now trying to get back onto Thor's lap.

"Do you know our real names?" Asked Steve. The girl nodded.

"Tony, Bruce, Clint, Natasha, Steve and.. and.. well your just Thor right?"

The 6 of them were stunned into silence. They looked the small girl up and down as she fidgeted a little on Thor's knee her attention diverted from the superheroes in front of her and to the dirt across her face. She rubbed at it uncomfortably.

"Not many people know our real names, Ella. Did your Mummy tell you that as well?" Said Steve quietly.

"Yu-huh!" She replied shortly as she continued to rub at her face. Thor licked his thumb and gently rubbed off the dried on piece of mud that the girl had been struggling with.

At that moment Pepper Potts strode into the room. She caught sight of the small girl sitting on Thor's knee and smiled softly to herself. She coughed lightly to draw attention to herself and Ella turned around. She grinned happily and jumped off Thor's knee.

"Pepper!" She giggled as she ran. She wrapped her arms around Pepper's legs and smiled.

"Good evening, Ella. Did you sleep well?" Pepper asked with the tilt of her head. She crouched to the girls height quickly.

"Yes, thank you for the bedtime story." She smiled as she could finally look Pepper in the eye. She hugged her once more and this time Pepper hugged back. "Is Ollie awake?"

"Not yet. I'm sure he will be soon though."

"Then he can meet everybody right? They're very nice." Ella said loudly before whispering in Pepper's ear, "But they ask a lot of questions."

"They do don't they." Pepper chuckled looking up at the group quickly, "But I think you need a bath to get that dirt off." She smiled. Steve got up from his chair and walked over to the pair.

"I'll take her." He offered, reaching out his hand for her to take. Ella took it with a smile and nodded. She looked up at the soldier.

"Um.. can I see your shield afterwards?" She asked, seeming shy for the first time since arriving in the tower. Steve smiled warmly.

"Of course you can."

"Here, I'll help." Spoke up Tony as he got up from his chair, leaving Bruce behind. As he approached Ella held out her free hand for Tony to hold. He faltered before taking it. Finally he enclosed her hand within his and the trio left the room. Pepper followed them out with a smile.

"While you're doing that I'll go and get them some supplies. They didn't come with anything so they'll be needing pajamas, nappies, bottles..." Pepper listed as she disappeared out of ear shot to get her coat. Tony watched her leave over his shoulder. She was so organised! If she hadn't have been here then the group would have freaked out. They wouldn't have thought to buy clothes and nappies and everything that little kids needed.

Suddenly Natasha poked her head out of the door.

"Hey, Pepper! Do you want me to come with you?" She shouted down the corridor, not knowing where Pepper had gone. "You're gonna have a lot to carry!"

"Thanks Natasha!" Pepper shouted back, "That would be helpful!"

Pepper reappeared from down the corridor in a coat and scarf, holding out Natasha's winter overcoat as well. Natasha took it gratefully, shrugging it on and opening the door for the two of them.

"See you later, Pepper." Called Tony as he, Ella and Steve stepped into lift. As the lift doors shut Steve and Tony pulled Ella off the ground swinging her like a monkey which caused her to erupt into giggles, refusing to put her feet back on the ground. She dangled happily until the lift open up on one of the higher floors. Ella dropped to the ground and walked out, letting go of her carer's hands and skipping ahead a little.

She peered about in awe at the lengthy corridor, she'd been down here twice already because the room she'd slept in had been down there but once she was only half awake and the second time she was still half asleep. The only reason she'd managed to find Thor was because a strange disembodied voice that had introduced himself as JARVIS had guided her towards the elevator. Now she was full of energy and wanted to explore. Her gasping at various items that littered the halls made Tony smile.

"Is this all yours?" Ella asked, turning to Tony and walking backwards.

"Yep, well 88%." He smiled to himself but Ella frowned in confusion. She dismissed it quickly however and spun herself the right way round and continued her skipping. "The door right at the end a bathroom." He added.

Ella approached it and turned the handle, standing on her tiptoes to peer in. She gasped loudly and flung the door open properly.

"Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow!" She squealed running around with her arms outstretched. "It's so big! It's bigger than my bedroom at home!"

Steve and Tony laughed before Steve caught one of her arms and scooped her up.

"That may be said but you do actually have to take bath in here so come on. Arms up." Steve transferred her into one arm and removed her T-shirt with the other, tickling her stomach when he was done so she squealed happily. Tony set about filling the bath so it wasn't to hot and waiting for Ella to be ready.

Finally Ella climbed in, giggling and poking bubbles. The girl was absolutely filthy even under her clothes. Gently the two males wiped all the mud from face and then from arms and chest. By the time they'd started on her legs and feet the water was beginning to look a murky brown colour.

Steve frowned at Tony who was sharing the same look. It wasn't right for the girl to be so dirty. Luckily she didn't seem hungry or thirsty so she must have been able to find food. But she was still on her own, looking after her little brother and trying to find shelter for the two of them.

"Steve?" Started, Ella.

"Yes?"

"Will you tell me a story?" She asked as she blew bubbles towards the wall.

"A story?" Queried Steve looking over to Tony who had suddenly started to smirk as he leaned against the towel rail.

"Yes, Capsicle! Tell us a story." Tony grinned, folding his arms.

"Right well, okay." Steve began looking at the girls expectant face. "Alright, Once upon a time there lived a crocodile in a river next to a big green forest. One day Mr Squirrel came up to Mr Crocodile and asked him for help. Can you help me, Mr Crocodile? I hid my nuts here last winter and now I can't seem to find them! He asked. Mr Crocodile thought about this for a little while. What's in it for me? He asked selfishly. I will give you half of my nuts replied Mr Squirrel. But I don't eat nuts said Mr Crocodile. I can't do anything else Mr Squirrel said with a sigh. He began to walk away from the river but Mr Crocodile stopped him. It doesn't matter. I'll still help you find your food he said. Mr Squirrel was so happy that he jumped onto Mr Crocodile's back and the two of them swam around the river. Finally the found Mr Squirrel's nuts and they all lived happily ever after."

When Steve had finished she turned to look at Tony was nodding in approval.

"Not bad, I think I could have done better though."

"Why don't you tell a story too!" Grinned Ella, "Although I really liked yours, Steve." She said quickly with a nod.

"Maybe next time, kiddo." He winked, ruffling her wet hair.

They hadn't realised how long it had taken to finally clean the girl but a knock came at the door. Pepper walked in, carrying Ollie in her arms and armed with pajamas and clean nappies for the little boy.

"Knock, knock." She called, smiling down as Steve wrapped Ella up in a towel and lifted her from the large bath. Tony pulled the plug out and watched the filthy water drain away. He proceeded to fill it again once it had emptied, assuming that Ollie would also be taking a bath that night. Steve swapped Ella for Ollie who was already undressed, courtesy of Pepper.

"Who you?" Ollie asked with a cute tilt of his head.

"My name is Steve and this is Tony." Steve answered, plonking the boy into the bath tub. The boy narrowed his eyes as he wracked his brains.

"Captain.. A..Ame.. America and Iron Man!" He said quickly. "Mummy told me that." He nodded, proud of himself as the Steve and Tony washed him.

The two looked up at Pepper who was drying off Ella and raised their eyebrows at the 2 year olds extensive knowledge of them. As far as they were aware 2 year olds weren't supposed to recognise superheroes that had only been on the TV a couple of times and about a year ago now. Not unless it had been drilled into their heads that the information of who they were was somewhat important.

It turned out that cleaning Ollie was much easier than cleaning Ella. It seemed that his sister had done an amazing job in making sure that the little stayed healthy and clean and they were positive that she had put herself in front of him at any sign of danger. An excellent quality for a big sister to have Steve had remarked.

Once he was clean they lifted Ollie from the bathtub, wrapped in a large fluffy towel much like his sister was and handed him to Pepper. Ella was sat on the toilet with the lid down while they had waited for Ollie.

"I'm going to put on a fresh nappy for him and then get them into their pajamas. You boys are free now." Pepper said, laying Ollie down on his back and lifting his legs into the air. Tony and Steve nodded before draining the bath and leaving down the hall. Their mutterings were serious but inaudible.

Pepper slipped the nappy on and picked him back up. She handed Ella a pair of pajamas. They were purple with two ponies on the T-shirt. The little girl giggled happily.

"I love them!"

"Good, once I've dressed your brother we'll go and say goodnight to the avengers, okay?"

"Okay!"

"Y'know, Ella? You're a very brave girl." Pepper said quietly, the tone changing. "Most girls in your situation would have scared about meeting all these people without their parents."

"I have no reason to be scared, Pepper. Mummy told me that these people are good. They do good and so they'll be good to me because well... they're good!"

"Do all your friends at school have Mummy's that tell them that these people are good?" Pepper asked, slowly coaxing information out of the girl.

"No, they don't believe me. They say that these people went away when the battle was done. They think it was a one time thing and that I'm crazy." Ella shrugged.

"Oh right.." Pepper mused as she did up the poppers on Ollie's onesie. "Ready?"

"Uh-huh!" Ella skipped down the corridor towards the lift and waited for Pepper to carry Ollie in."

As soon as they reached the floor Ella asked to let Ollie walk in with her. Pepper agreed and placed Ollie onto his own wobbly feet. The little boy grabbed for Ella's hand and took it tightly. They walked into the living room and an eruption of coos occurred.

"I just wanted to say goodnight. And so did Ollie!" Ella said with a smile.

"Nighty..."

Ella smiled sheepishly and then left the room again, Pepper in tow. Once they were gone Tony sighed and spoke up.

"Things need to be discussed."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Evening everybody. I've got an overflow of ideas so I've been writing the last chapter and these next couple in one lot and I'll upload every other day or so. Thanks for your reviews, favourites and follows. They mean a lot.**

**Apple Of My Eye 3**

The group of 6 sat were dotted about the kitchen when Director Fury walked in. His good eye scanned the room quickly and surveryed that Tony and Bruce were sat next to each other at the breakfast bar, Steve had taken position leaned against the fridge with his arms folded. Clint was hard to spot at first but Fury soon spotted him perched on the kitchen counter with Natasha leaning her elbows on it.

"The look on your faces tells me that you've called me here for what can only be a serious matter." Fury said as he looked over the frosty expressions that littered the room. Silence filled the room for a moment before Tony decided to speak.

"We have," Tony began as he inhaled deeply. "We have some visitors."

"So I was told on the phone. Two children?"

"A young girl called Ella and her little brother named, Ollie." Added Steve, unfolding his arms and using his right foot to lever himself away from the fridge and towards the middle table.

"And what exactly is so serious about two children being abandoned that it requires my assistance? I'm sad to say it's not an uncommon occurrence and it's not one that usually involves my presence." Said Fury. He rose an eyebrow towards Steve.

"They knew about us. Both of them did." Explained Natasha quickly.

"Once again, that's not uncommon. A fair amount of children saw you in the Battle of New York and they've remembered you." Argued Fury again, not seeing the point they were trying to make.

"Ollie is two years old at most. How on Earth could he know who we were? He must have been less than 1 year old during that battle." Tony pointed out.

"Maybe he his older sister told him about you when they played together? Why is that so strange?"

"No, he said his Mum taught him." Said Clint, shaking his head.

"What's strange about that then?"

"Ella knows more about us than any kid I've ever met. She could describe what each of us can do and probably would have gone further if we let her." Said Tony.

Director Fury sighed a little deeper as he suddenly understood the full weight of the problem. Children that appeared to have been trained to recognise them. He sank into one of the kitchen chairs and looked around at the group.

"What else do they know?" He asked wearily.

"They both know our real names. And Ella can do it without knowing our aliases as well." Said Bruce.

"They didn't recognise me when I found them. But the two were tired. Though she was very trusting when I told her my name so I think somewhere deep down she knew who I was and that she had been told I would be able to help her." Said Thor. Fury nodded along, his features contorting into a deep frown as he thought.

"And their Mother? What do we know about her? What do we know that she's said to them?" Fury questioned.

"She told them every time she walked past here that... that one day I and the rest of the Avengers might just save their life." Tony answered.

"And we appear to have done just that." Natasha continued.

"This woman, their Mother, whoever she is, she knows a lot. There are plenty of leads we could take. Is there a Father. Do we know their last name?" Asked Fury as took to his feet again. He now paced around the kitchen as he waited for the answers to his questions. However, they didn't come from the person he expected.

Pepper Potts walked through door.

"Their last name is Lance. I'm working on the Father business. I think it's a little bit of a touchy subject." She answered Fury and winked towards Tony who was stood dumbstruck at her sudden revelation.

"Well, aren't you clever." He remarked with a grin, beckoning her over and taking her hand.

"Well, I do try. By the way Ella asked me why you said that you only owned 88% of your house."

"And what did you say?"

"I said it should have been 85% but the argument fell through." Giggled Pepper as Tony snickered into the back of his hand. Fury turned to the pair and folded his arms. Letting out a small cough he attempted, and succeeded, at returning the attention to the matter at hand.

"Thank you very much, Miss Potts. Following this information we will launch an investigation into these children's parents. Their extensive knowledge is not like those of the children that we usually encounter." Finished Fury as he made his way to the door.

"Are the children staying?" Asked Thor quickly. Fury turned back towards the group with his hand on the door knob.

"For now."

A look of relief washed over the group. In the short time that they had known the two that had grown sort of attached to them. It was nice to know that they would be staying.

* * *

Morning rose in Stark Tower and Bruce rubbed his eyes. He had spent the night on the couch so that Ella and Ollie could have a bed. Tony had reassured him while they worked down in the basement that night that two empty rooms were going to be decorated and furnished appropriately for them within three days. It didn't bother Bruce that he had to sleep on sofa for now. He had had it much worse else where.

He sat up and inhaled deeply as he stretched his arms and back. Pushing off the covers he swung his feet onto the ground when I sudden startling noise broke out through the house. A high pitched wail rang through the corridors and into each room.

"Ollie has awoken from his slumber and appears to want your attention." Announced JARVIS as he acted like a baby monitor. Various grumbles sounded from around the house.

"What the hell?" Complained Natasha from somewhere on a high up floor.

"Somebody go see what he wants." Pleaded Tony from his own room. He covered his head with a pillow to block it out. It appeared that Thor and Clint hadn't even been wakened.

"I'll go." Shouted Steve, "Seeing as nobody else is going to volunteer!"

Bruce decided that he would also go up and see if he could help. He stood up and stumbled sleepily towards the elevator. As he reached the second floor the lift doors opened and Steve entered, scratching the back of his head with a yawn. He raised a hand in greeting to Bruce but spent the duration of the journey in a tired silence.

They walked into Bruce's bedroom to find Ella kneeling next to a wailing Ollie. She was gently shushing him as made an attempt to get a dirty nappy off of her brother. It appeared as though she had ransacked the carrier bags of supplies that had been left in their room for now.

"Do want some help with that, Ella?" Asked Steve as he crouched beside the bed.

"No, no! I got it! I've done it a lot!" She answered, her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth in concentration. She pulled of the dirty nappy quickly substituting it for a clean one and doing it up. "See? I can do it."

Ella looked up at Steve and smiled proudly as Ollie stopped crying and giggled instead, kicking his legs about in the air as he laid on his back.

"But you don't have to do it anymore. We're here to take you of you both. That means you don't have to worry about changing Ollie's nappy all the time." Explained Steve gently as he watched Ella do up the onesie again.

"Oh..." Ella faltered.

"Ella, how old are you and Ollie?" Asked Steve.

"I'm 7 and he's almost 2."

"Aaaaaaall... most!" Copied Ollie with a giggle. Bruce sat on the edge of the bed quietly.

"You're so young. Surely you should be playing with your friends and going to the park and learning all the things a 7 year old should be learning?" Said Bruce as he tilted his head at the girl. Ella simply shrugged and jumped off the bed to stand in front of the bed.

"I'm starving! Can I have breakfast?" She asked brightly. Bruce sighed a little before nodding.

"Come on, lets see what we can find." He said as he let her skip out of the door, leaving Ollie and Steve alone in the room.

Steve straightened up before sitting down on the covers and picking up Ollie under the armpits. He let the boy stand on his lap as he supported him carefully. He couldn't help smiling when he stared at this little boy. He seemed to be generally quiet when he was content and he didn't appear to say much. Steve bounced him up and down on his knees until his knees gave way. At which point he scooped up the boy and cradled him in his arms, rocking him back and forth.

"I suppose we should see if Pepper bought you some milk to drink? I'm sure she did. She's good at being organised." Steve said to Ollie as he cradled him easily in one arm. He stood up again and began to search through the bags. "Ah ha! Here we are."

He walked out of the bedroom, armed with the baby boy and a carrier bag full of formula milk and bottles. Before long he had reached the kitchen where Ella was sat eating toast and marmalade with Bruce.

"Hold him while I get the bottle ready will you?" He asked, holding out Ollie towards him. Bruce looked a little nervous before holding Ollie tentatively in his arms.

"Right.. erm.. okay. Hi there.. Ollie."

Steve fiddled around the kitchen for a good 5 minutes, heating and sterilizing bottles and milk until he was sure it was safe and ready for the boy to drink. He took him back off the still nervous looking Bruce and held the bottle to Ollie's lips.

"Aren't you glad that they're staying?" He asked Bruce with a touch of fondness in his voice as he looked at the small boy drinking from the bottle and the young girl smearing marmalade of the pristine worktops.

"Glad, of course. But also nervous." Answered Bruce with a fearful smile.

"I think I know why but I'm sure it will all be fine. You haven't had an incident in a long time and no one was hurt during the last one." Reassured Steve gently as Ollie drained the bottle.

"I'm sure you're right." Agreed Bruce as he scratched at his arm - a tell tale sign of his anxiousness.


End file.
